In his new book, “Judaism is About Love,” Rabbi Shai Held — one of the most important Jewish thinkers in America today — recovers the heart of the Jewish tradition, offering the radical and moving argument that love belongs as much to Judaism as it does to Christianity. Whether you are well-versed in Jewish teachings or exploring them for the first time, this transformative conversation is sure to leave you inspired and enriched.
Rabbi Shai Held is President and Dean of the Hadar Institute in New York City. Rabbi Held received the prestigious Covenant Award for Excellence in Jewish Education, and has been named multiple times to Newsweek’s list of the most influential rabbis in America and to the Forward’s list of the most prominent Jews in the world. He is the author of Abraham Joshua Heschel: The Call of Transcendence (2013) and The Heart of Torah: Essays on the Weekly Torah Portion (2017). His newest book, Judaism is About Love, was published in March 2024.
PJCC is honored to bring Rabbi Shai Held to the North Peninsula.
Testimonials:
“This is a truly magnificent book, necessary for our troubled times. Shai Held, one of Judaism’s leading scholars and thinkers, rebuts facile stereotypes of Judaism that contrast Jewish law with Christian love, and demonstrates the centrality of love, imagination, and compassion in the Jewish tradition. In this difficult world. Held’s book should be required reading for Jews and non-Jews alike.”
– Martha C. Nussbaum, Distinguished Service Professor of Philosophy and Law, The University of Chicago
“There are good thinkers, there are great thinkers, and then there are once-in-a generation thinkers like Rabbi Shai Held. Rabbi Held’s astounding and contagious knowledge of his faith, mixed with his endlessly curious dives into and dialogue with other religious and philosophical traditions, make him an utterly unique figure in religion and philosophy.”
– The Rev. Dr. Patricia Lyons, Senior Advisor to the Dean on Evangelism and Senior Lecturer in Practical Theology at Virginia Theological Seminary
Peninsula Temple Beth El
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